Asean Travel And Tours

Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines have relaxed visa policies to attract foreign tourists amid fierce regional competition. Vietnam Starting March 1 Vietnam waived visas for tourists from Poland, Czechia and Switzerland coming on package tours for up to 45 days. In mid-March the government also decided to extend visa exemptions until 2028 for citizens of 12 countries: Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Norway, Russia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden and the U.K. The waiver had expired on March 15. Travelers from 13 other countries - Belarus, Chile, Panama, Kyrgystan and 9 Southeast Asian neighbors - are enjoying visa exemptions for between 14 and 90 days. Malaysia Malaysia recently announced that its visa exemption for Chinese travelers would be extended for another five years, with the option to extend it for an additional five years, Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said. This means Chinese citizens can visit Malaysia visa-free until Dec. 31, 2036. The p...

If you have a plan to travel to Vietnam in summer but not know where to go. Just check some attractive places that are well worth taking a visit. It will be the best choice for tourists when coming to Vietnam in the hot wet season. Phu Quoc Island Way down in southern Vietnam in the Gulf of Thailand, Phu Quoc is a biggest pristine and beautiful island travelers cannot ignore for a summer in Vietnam. Because of its natural and undeveloped island, Phu Quoc is endorsed as a dreamy place, one of top best beach in vietnam with white sandy beaches and the surrounding splendid coral reefs under the translucent water. The most famous spots in Phu Quoc are Khem Beach, Sao Beach, and Ham Ninh fishing village. Especially, scuba diving service is readily available here, creating a perfect condition and giving a perfect summer trip as well for tourists to discover and admire the beauty of life under the sea. Sapa Sapa is rated as one of the most dramatic nature mountain sites in the northeast of Vi...

Hoi An ancient city from above. Photo by Vo Rin The northern mountainous province of Ha Giang and Hoi An city in the central province of Quang Nam have been ranked among the 44 most beautiful places in the world by U.K.-based travel magazine Time Out. The magazine ranked Ha Giang in tenth place, saying the winding mountain passes, terraced rice paddies and 43 different ethnic groups that call this place home, all combine to give Ha Giang its otherworldly air. According to Time Out, Tham Ma Pass is an obvious pull, winding its way through six successive hairpin bends, while the Ma Pi Leng Pass carves a mountain edge, overlooking the Nho Que River 3000 feet below. "However, my personal favorite vista in Ha Giang affords a different kind of beauty, the kind to confront you with your own teeny-tiny mortality. In La Si and its surrounding region you'll glimpse mountain after mountain, as far as the eye can see, of terraced rice paddies. It's taken thousands (yes thousands) of y...

You could say there are two types of people in the world - culinary romantics and culinary conventionalists. The first chase after food in its "natural state" - they want to eat under messy local conditions, they lose their heads over exotic meals and flavors in foreign countries, they are open to new things - sometimes to the point of taking personal risks. The second seek out fine things that come with the stamp of tradition. They crave the approval of official good taste - be it that of Michelin guides or food blogs. Culinary conventionalists want to eat what others say is good to eat. I’ve always been on the romantic end of the spectrum - and I come from a city, Melbourne, where it’s possible to be a culinary adventurer in an international sense. Melbourne has Ethiopian and Mexican and Balinese and Szechuan and Afghan corners, where people from all those places cook wildly exotic dishes with flair. As soon as I was old enough, I went looking for them. Further back in the ...

Tourists visit the Grand Palace in Bangkok, Thailand, on Jan. 7, 2023. Photo by Reuters Police in Thailand have arrested a Chinese man for illegally working as a tour guide, a profession strictly prohibited for foreigners in the Southeast Asian country. Yue Liu, 31, allegedly offered luxury sightseeing tours to tourists at Bangkok's Wat Phra Kaew temple and the Grand Palace, Khaosod English news site reported. Customers reportedly booked his services through the WeChat messaging app, and he would drive them around the historic sites, as reported by Newsflare. Liu was apprehended on May 6 as authorities intensified their crackdown on illegal foreign workers in Thailand. He faces charges for "working without a work permit" and "operating a tour business without a license." According to Thailand's Ministry of Labor, the law prohibits foreigners from working as tour guides or bringing foreign tourists, either individually or in groups, to various locations withi...

Foreign tourists at Hanoi Train Street, March 2025. Photo by VnExpress/Anh Chinh The global search volume for tourist accommodations in Vietnam has increased by 10-25% since early 2025, ranking 7th in the world for growth in destination searches. Vietnam is also the only Southeast Asian country listed in the top 10, surpassing other competitors in the region, such as the Philippines (ranking 18th), Singapore (25th), Thailand (36th), Indonesia (37th), and Malaysia (39th). The top 10 most searched Vietnamese destinations were Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Da Nang, Phu Quoc, Nha Trang, Hoi An, Vung Tau, Da Lat, Phan Thiet, and Hue. Notably, Vung Tau and Ninh Binh recorded the highest growth in search volume with over 75%. The U.S. was the leading source of international interest in information about travel to Vietnam, followed by India, Australia, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, the U.K., Taiwan Malaysia, and Hong Kong. Several factors that make Vietnam a favorite and attractive destination for...

Vietnamese singer Chi Pu took Chinese actress and singer-songwriter Leo Li to visit Da Nang and Hoi An where they released flower lanterns on the Hoai River and posed at the Golden Bridge. Chi Pu (R) posted a series of vacation photos with Leo Li from Da Nang and Hoi An on May 6, revealing that the trip was initiated by the Chinese singer with no prior plans. Leo Li, born in Hunan province, China, has been active in the entertainment industry for 14 years as a singer, actress, and television presenter. She is known for her roles in the films "General and I," "Make My Heart Smile," and "When Shui Met Mo – A Love Story." Meanwhile, Chi Pu is a popular singer in Vietnam and made her debut on the Chinese market with her appearance in "Sisters Who Make Waves," a famous reality show in China. Her musical performances throughout the show gained a lot of attention from local audiences. They drink coconut water at a local restaurant. "Although everyt...